The cricket world has once again found itself in a heated discussion, this time because of a fun challenge on social media.
Former England captain Michael Vaughan was asked to pick between Joe Root and a list of other modern-day stars in a game called “This or That.”
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But what really made fans sit up was when the final choice came down to Root vs Virat Kohli and Vaughan didn’t hesitate to pick the Englishman.
What did Michael Vaughan say in the viral ‘This or That’ challenge?
In the clip posted on Instagram, Vaughan kept choosing Joe Root against one player after another.
He first went through names like Temba Bavuma, Travis Head, Babar Azam, Rachin Ravindra, and Cameron Green and every time, he sided with Root without much thought.
When Kane Williamson’s name popped up, Vaughan paused briefly but still leaned towards Root. He also picked Root over Marnus Labuschagne and Aiden Markram.
The toughest one seemed to be Steve Smith, but even then, Vaughan ended up going with Root.
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Finally came the big clash- Root vs Kohli. To everyone’s surprise, Vaughan didn’t show any second thoughts and straightaway went with Root.
That one decision has sparked debates across social media, with fans questioning whether leaving Kohli out was fair.
Comparison of Joe Root and Virat Kohli numbers in cricket
Joe Root’s numbers in Test cricket are nothing short of remarkable. The former England skipper has scored more than 13,500 runs with an average over 51 and has 39 centuries to his name. That puts him second among all-time run scorers in the format.
Kohli, on the other hand, retired from Tests earlier this year with 9,230 runs at an average close to 47, along with 30 centuries.
While his record is still outstanding, Root’s sheer weight of runs gives him the edge in red-ball cricket.
The story flips when you look at limited-overs cricket. Virat Kohli is one of the greatest ever in ODIs, with more than 14,000 runs and 51 hundreds. In T20Is too, Kohli has over 4,000 runs at an average near 49.
Root, in comparison, has solid but not extraordinary white-ball stats. He has 7,300 ODI runs and less than 1,000 in T20Is. Clearly, when it comes to the shorter formats, Kohli’s dominance is unmatched.
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